Receive an introduction to comics-making from concept to inking from author/illustrator Jonathan Todd. Jonathan will share with you:
• Exposure to zine-style autobiographical and personal comics i.e. drawing comics about personal experiences and thoughts, such as the work of Ms. Gabrielle Bell (https://www.patreon.com/posts/13518637)
• How to break down a scene from their story into panels using thumbnail sketches
• How to clearly letter a comics page
• How to pencil a page
• How to ink a page, including exposure to brush and ink and pen and ink
*For ages 10 – 18 *
*Generously provided through the Sperber Fund*

Comics are their own storytelling format and can tell all kinds of stories. Whether you pour over the Sunday comic strips, read stacks of Japanese manga, or settle in with the latest graphic novel memoir, there is a title for you. This year marks the 25th anniversary of Scott McCloud’s landmark text Understanding Comics, a guide to how comics work written in the format. Everyone from new comics readers to long-time enthusiasts are invited to join the library’s resident comics expert Robin Brenner to learn how to decode visual cues, read in between the panels, and understand how this hybrid medium engages our brains.
This event is part of the Learn Something New series. Generously sponsored by the Library Trustees.

The Boston Comics Roundtable, our favorite local indie comics group, is releasing BEING TRUE, an LGBTQ comics anthology that is an uploifting celebration of LGBTQ lie and identity. The stories blend fiction and nonfiction, from fantasy and superhero comics to real and touching stories from the artists’ lives. While many local creators were tapped for this project, the anthology also includes contributors from as far as Brazil and Poland.

Since the original TASCHEN edition of Manga Design, Japan’s comic phenomenon has produced yet more captivating characters and a whole host of hot new talents. This revised and updated edition delivers the lowdown on the latest and the greatest makers and shapers of the manga scene. Through an A-Z directory, we discover the superstars, both human and fictional, of what is now a vast global industry, inspiring advertisers, filmmakers, creative professionals, millions of avid fans, not to mention an entire cosplay lifestyle, in which manga devotees in elaborate costume meet to celebrate the existence of their characters at huge conventions from Los Angeles to Leipzig.

(W) Evan Dorkin (A) Veronica Fish (CA) Becky CloonanFrom the multi-Eisner award-winning creator of Beasts of Burden and the artist of Archie and Slam comes this supernatural fantasy about a magical murder in a sorcery school. When four teenagers with haunted pasts enroll in Blackwood College — a school that trains students in the occult — their desire to enhance their supernatural abilities and bond with others is hampered by an undead dean’s curse, ghosts in their dorm, a mischievous two-headed mummy-chimp, a plague of mutant insects, and the discovery of an ancient evil that forces our heroes to undergo a crash course in the occult for the sake of the world.

(W) Greg Pak (A/CA) Takeshi MiyazawaOnce a year, giant robots from outer space come to Earth and bond with young cadets from the elite Sky Corps Academy to defend the world from the terrifying aliens known as the Sharg. It’s a great honor to be chosen, but this year… well, the wrong kid was picked. Greg Pak ( Totally Awesome Hulk ) and Takeshi Miyazawa ( Ms. Marvel ) team up for an action-packed and heartfelt underdog story about the true makings of heroism and friendship in the face of overwhelming odds. Collects issues #1-4 and an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at the making of Mech Cadet Yu, including the comic short story that inspired the series.

(W) Alan Grant, Jim Starlin, Ron Marz, Simmons (A) James Sherman, Jack Sparling (A/CA) Ron LimThe Mad Titan is on a quest for Death! The Silver Surfer may believe he has killed Thanos, but the terrible truth is that the Mad Titan still lives – and that’s bad news for the Marvel Universe, because Thanos’ great love has sent him on a space-faring search for the Infinity Gems! Meanwhile, the Surfer tackles a deadly life-form and deals with the madness of Dynamo City! But when Thanos returns from his quest, glove on hand and hell-bent for revenge, do the Surfer, Galactus and Drax the Destroyer stand a chance? And whose side will Mephisto be on? Norrin Radd must face his past as events build to a confrontation that sets the stage for the cosmic epic known as INFINITY GAUNTLET! Collecting SILVER SURFER (1987) #39-50 and ANNUAL #3, THANOS QUEST #1-2 and material from MARVEL COMICS PRESENTS (1988) #50. Rated T

(W) Clement Baloup (A/CA) Clement BaloupColonialism and war disrupted the lives of millions of Vietnamese people during the 20th century. These are their stories. In his award-winning work, Vietnamese Memories, Clément Baloup chronicles, through vivid painted art and poetic storytelling, the fate of a handful of people who, like many of their peers, were condemned to leave a country successively occupied by the Japanese, the French and the Americans. Leaving Saigon recounts the experiences of Vietnamese citizens who, through different circumstances and different periods, ended up in various parts of France. These stories are testimonials of courage and endurance in the face of turmoil and displacement.

Hey, we’re filling the back issue bins with comics from the last 5+ years. Bring your wish list!

ALSO, Adam has bagged more sets of comics, collecting storylines, and we are selling them for prices cheaper than their trade paperback collection counterparts! Titles include the sadly cancelled MOCKINGBIRD run, GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY, and SMALLVILLE. You can find them all along the bottom shelf, under our new comics!

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The Boston Comics Roundtable, our favorite local indie comics group, is releasing BEING TRUE, an LGBTQ comics anthology that is an uploifting celebration of LGBTQ lie and identity. The stories blend fiction and nonfiction, from fantasy and superhero comics to real and touching stories from the artists’ lives. While many local creators were tapped for this project, the anthology also includes contributors from as far as Brazil and Poland.

As part of this year’s One City, One Book program, Malden Reads is hosting a Conversation on Race using the 2018 book selection, “The Hate U Give” by Angie Thomas, and incorporating insights from the Boston Globe Spotlight Series.